


“I kept my promises”

by buggiesreign



Category: Archie Comics, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Character Death, Future Bughead, Sad, Sad bughead
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-28
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2020-07-23 11:30:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20007586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buggiesreign/pseuds/buggiesreign
Summary: Jughead Jones was diagnosed with cancer and Betty has to learn how to accept that the love of her life won’t be by her side forever





	“I kept my promises”

**Author's Note:**

> Remember one of the characters has cancer in this story and could die, so if that triggers you, please do not read this.  
> This isn’t meant to be offensive or insensitive in any way.
> 
> Also, I’ve never written a one shot like this, so please tell me what you think of this down below. (Inspired by @reinhartsdream au ‘Our secret’ on instagram)

8 months.

It had been 8 months, since Jughead was diagnosed with cancer.

The doctors tried everything, but they discovered it too late. They couldn’t do anything.

It had been a Wednesday, when Betty heard, when she found out, that he wouldn’t survive.

His father had started drinking again, but Betty didn’t tell Jughead. She didn’t want to upset him in any way.

She visited everyday. Even though school, studying and her part time job at Pops, to pay for medical bills, took up a lot of her time, she managed to visit everyday.

Whenever Jughead asked if it sometimes was too much, to take care if him, to visit him, while being in school, she smiled and shook her head, telling him that everything is fine.

But Betty knew that he could see right through her, he always could. He knew she was lying and was overwhelmed, but he also knew he couldn’t say anything that would change Bettys mind on coming to the hospital everyday.

Another month passed, with failing treatment attempts and daily visits. Jughead had accepted his fate at this at this point, knowing he was dying, but Betty, being her positive self, still had hope.

On the last Sunday of May, 9 months after he was diagnosed, Betty arrived at the hospital around 9 am, right after his 8:30 check-in was over.

“Hey Juggie” she greeted with a smile, as the nurses walked out of the room. Betty held up a bag of pops, with a lot of his favorites inside.

Jughead returned her smile, a little less enthusiastically and sat up slightly, patting the place next to him on the bed. “Hey, Betts”.

Betty sat down on the bed next to him, adjusting herself, so she was comfortable. “I brought you your favorite”, the blonde said, as she started to unpack the bag of pops.

Jughead couldn’t help but smile wider, at her cuteness and excitement over bringing him his favorites. “You really are the best thing that ever happened to me”, he said, looking at her.

Betty turned her head, to look back at him, the smile on her face paired with loving eyes. “I love you so much” she said softly, before pecking his lips. “Now eat”.

“Yes ma’am” he said with a chuckle and reached for the first burger and ate it, in what Betty thought could’ve been record time.

They spent the day eating the food she brought and watching movies on the laptop, standing on his bedside table. They were cuddled up closely, with Bettys arms around his neck and her head on his chest. His arms were wrapped around her waist tightly, while her leg was thrown over his, their hands turned to look at the small screen.

Jughead paused the episode of Friends they were currently watching and Betty looked up at him.

“Betty, I have to tell you something” he said, his voice serious and Bettys expression immediately turned worried.

“Earlier today, during my check in, the doctor told me that nothing is working and that I’m not having much time left” he explained, unable to look her in the eyes.

“Jug-“ she began, but was interrupted by Jughead.

“Please let me finish”. Betty nodded at his request and was already fighting tears, threatening to build up in her eyes.

“I don’t know how much time exactly I have left, but it’s not much and so I want to say this, while I still can.” he said, taking a deep breath afterwards and Betty let him speak.

“Ever since I first met you, I knew you were it for me and I know that sounds crazy, because we met when we were 5, but something in me always knew you were special.”

“Over the years, my feelings for you just grew, mainly because I got old enough to actually feel something resembling love at one point”. They both chuckled softly at that.

“I never thought I’d have a chance to tell you, to show you how I felt, but when you and Archie had that argument and we started to get closer, I decided to give it a shot and thank god I did.”

“It definitely paid off.” she said, unable to stop herself from interrupting at this point.

“Yeah, definitely.” he agreed, before he continued. “Being with you, no matter how many bumps in the road there were, was truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. I never thought I deserve love or happiness, until I got to be loved by you, until you showed me happiness.”

“When I heard you say those three words for the first time, I was so overwhelmed with emotions, that I quite literally thought my heart would burst.”

“I caught myself picturing our future together. We’d get out of here, go to college. In our senior year, I’d propose to you and we’d get married after I publish my first book and you got a promotion at your job at the New York Times.”

“We’d live in a nice apartment together, not too far from Archie and Veronica. That is until we’d decide to expand our family. We’d get a house and have two or three kids, possibly a dog.”

“We’d be happy. I’d do anything to make you happy. Sure, we’d fight from time to time, but we’d always come back stronger, until one day at a high age, we’d lay in bed, similar to how we are now. Our kids would be all grown up and have families of their own. We’d fall asleep, in each others arms after spending our lives together.”

Betty was fighting the tears flowing down her cheeks at this point.

“You’re the reason I allowed myself to wish for that. Without you, I wouldn’t have had enough hope to do so. You changed my life for the better.”

“I can safely say that you, Betty Cooper, are my forever, my everything, my soulmate.”

Betty was a sobbing mess by now, her face buried in his chest, his arms still tightly around her.

“You’re my soulmate too, Jug. I’ll never love anyone the way I love you. That future would’ve been perfect” she said, through her tears, angling her face, to place the side on his chest again, right above his heart.

“I want that future for you. I want you to get out of here, to go to college, get engaged, follow your dreams, get married, have kids. I want you to have all of that” he said, just like Betty, unable to keep his tears in.

“I don’t want it without you” she said, listening to his heartbeat.

“Please promise me. Promise me, you’ll find happiness again. Promise me, Betts. I couldn’t find peace otherwise” he begged, his hand stroking her back gently.

“I promise” she said, after a moment of silence. “I promise, I’ll try to find happiness again and follow my dreams” she said. “I’ll never forget you, Incan promise that too”.

“Thank you. I love you” he said weakly.

Betty was about to return his words, when she felt his hand stop stroking and his heart stopped beating.

She buried her face in his chest, not daring to look up, as loud sobs, left her mouth.

Somewhere in the back of he mind, she registered nurses coming into the room, asking if she was okay, but Betty didn’t reply. She just lay there, sobbing.

After what felt like hours, she got up slowly and looked at him, his eyes closed.

She brushed the curl out of his hair and kissed his forehead, before getting out of the bed slowly and letting the nurses do their job.

———————————————————————————————————————————

The funeral was three weeks later and everyone came, the whole town was there, except for Betty.

She sat at the waterhole, the place they first met. She couldn’t take it. All these people mourning Jughead, even though almost none of them appreciate or even talked to him, while he was still alive. 

She sat there and stared at the water, glancing at the picture she had put up of him there. 

“I miss you” she began softly, tears already rolling down her face.

“It’s all still so surreal. Everyday I wake up, thinking you’ll come knocking on my door ... or window” she said with a chuckle. 

“And we’ll make plans to leave, right after graduation. I liked your plan, you know” she said.

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to do any of this without you, but I remember my promise and I’ll do anything to keep it.”

“But I also remember saying, I’ll never love anyone the way I love you. I promise that too.”

———————————————————————————————————————————

*20 years later*

Betty was standing in the kitchen of her house, waiting for her husband to come home and take their youngest daughter to ballet class, as she still had to finish writing an article.

She looked over at her three children, with a smile on her face.

Juliette, Jackson and Beth.

Juliette walked over and sat down on one of the chairs, looking at Betty.

“What’s up?” Betty asked her 11-year old. 

“I think I’m in love with a boy” she said and smiled slightly.

Betty smile matched her daughters, as she asked “Oh really?”.

“Yes” her oldest said and nodded. “Who was your first love mommy?” she asked and Betty thought about the raven haired, beanie wearing boy.

“That’s a story for another day. Why don’t you go prepare your sister for her class?” she asked and Juliette jumped up and ran over to her younger sister.

Betty looked at her kids for a few more heartbeats, before walking upstairs and into her office. She sat down at the comfortable chair, next to her book case, her eyes looking over her favorite copy of Beloved, before settling on a picture.

The picture showed Betty smiling at the camera, Jughead right next to her with his arm around her waist and smiling at Betty.

“I kept my promises, love. Every single one” she said, a smile on her face, while a single tear rolled down her cheek, as she looked at the man she still called her soulmate and always will.


End file.
